Fw. Weckerly, ROOSEVELT ELK ALONG THE PRAIRIE CREEK DRAINAGE - AN EVALUATION OF ESTIMATING ABUNDANCE AND HERD COMPOSITION, California fish and game, 82(4), 1996, pp. 175-181
Roosevelt elk, Cervus elephus roosevelti, abundance north of Orick, Hu
mboldt County, California, was estimated using a mark-resight method f
or individuals that possessed unique scars, pelage, and antler configu
rations, Estimated population size was 115 (95% CI = 105-134), Calf:co
w, yearling bull:cow, and bull:cow ratios were 0.45:1, 0.21:1, and 0.3
8:1, Monte Carlo simulations using the joint hypergeometric distributi
on suggest that improvements in the reliability of estimates can be ob
tained by increasing the number of resight episodes and observing a la
rge proportion of the population, Estimating size of this unhunted pop
ulation using the mark-resight approach appears to be reliable and cos
t-effective.